IT was a leap of faith for Wilmslow rally driver Natalie Barratt when she took to the Spanish hills for her debut in the World Rally Car championship.

The top female rally star called on a little divine assistance before competing for the first time in the sport's equivalent of Formula One.

The gutsy 27-year-old, who always carries a jar of Holy Water with her during races, had her new, more powerful car blessed before the Catalunya stage.

Natalie said: "My new car is like a rocket compared to what I'm used to driving. Approaching a hair-pin bend in this thing, travelling at 80 miles an hour while looking over a cliff face, its not difficult to keep up my religion."

Natalie, a former Mount Carmel pupil, left the Alderley Edge catholic school after completing her GCSEs but still calls in on her old teachers - the Sisters of St Josephs.

She said: "I'm proud to be a catholic but I'm not on my own on the circuit. A lot of rally drivers are religious.

"It certainly helps in such a dangerous sport. I have had one or two of my cars blessed and I definitely considered blessing this one before setting off on practise."

Despite the holy intervention, the blond pocket rocket, who stands at just five foot two inches tall, was forced to retire from the Spanish rally in the very first day of competition.

An engine fire dramatically extinguished her hopes after a catalogue of mechanical problems made it a frustrating WRC debut for Natalie.

She said: "It's a great shame that the only stage we did without a problem was the very first stage I did in a World Rally Car."

Her next appearance in the work's prepared Hyundai Accent will be in the Acropolis Rally in Greece, starting on Thursday June 13.